The American Food Group’s beef processing plant, termed “Project Groot” by the South Western Kentucky EDC, won’t be coming to Christian County. That much is abundantly certain.
But if the Commonwealth’s Interim Joint Committee on Appropriations and Revenue and its constituents get their way, it won’t be a lost project for the state of Kentucky.
During Wednesday’s session, Agricultural Commissioner Ryan Quarles — alongside Executive Vice President of the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association Dave Maples, Director of Kentucky’s Beef Network Becky Thompson and H&R Agri-Power President Wayne Hunt — laid out a comprehensive discussion, in which the American-based company not only belonged in Kentucky, but deserved to be in Kentucky as one of the nation’s top beef producers this side of the Mississippi.
Quarles, however, alluded to the fact that perhaps his office hadn’t been brought along expeditiously for company overtures.
Maples referenced that the state of Kentucky just landed a colossal 5,000-job project in Hardin County, in what will be a $5.8-billion plan creating batteries for electric vehicles inside Ford Motor Company.
With Kentucky’s major need for a beef processing facility and its 1,400-plus jobs paying more than $19/hour with a half-billion-dollar investment, Maples added perhaps some other district in the state wants it — as long as the state offers a better incentive package.
Thompson said that, in 2019, the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association launched a long-range plan, and that within that long-range plan, a meat-processing, packing and distribution facility was a part of the longitudinal picture.
Committee chairman and 16th District Representative Jason Petrie unfurled a rhetorical statement with Quarles, and 98th District Representative Danny Bentley almost directly offered up an invitation for the company to perch in eastern Kentucky.
Hunt, who was with the contingent that visited one of the company facilities in Green Bay, Wisconsin, noted to the committee that there were several factors that led to Christian County’s rebuke — including the location sought, and perhaps the lack of time taken to ingratiate and explain the process to locals.
During his Thursday news conference, Governor Andy Beshear was asked to comment on Quarles’ statements to the committee, to which Beshear refuted the commissioner’s comments. Beshear noted that he personally met with American Food Group officials, and that the Cabinet for Economic Development went up to Green Bay for its own visit.
He added that there was a “competitive” incentive package built for the company to seek Kentucky, but then referenced the Hoptown Chronicle’s report of public meetings and discourse — as well as cogent rebuttal from Christian County’s District 6 Magistrate Phillip Peterson and 9th District Representative Myron Dossett — as other factors playing a part.
Full audio of the committee hearing:
